Punishment
by SilverCrystal029
Summary: Jean and Scott talk about punishment at an early morning training session. ROMY JOTT one shot


He couldn't get Gambit to break a sweat.

And, Scott Summers had been trying. Rather hard. It was going from a minor annoyance to big a obsession (most things usually did), and he wasn't sure how he was going to achieve his goal. Unfortunately for the cajun, he was an established problem solver. Nothing less would grant him leadership of the world's most important team. He would not be outsmarted, _out-charisma'd_ by a thief.

His girlfriend must've sensed his scowl inside, because she appeared right beside him. Only when the man was scheming could he take his eyes off of her, but she already knew that. They knew each other better than anyone ever has, and ever will, right? And she sees right through the routine her doting boyfriend would never admit to.

The newest edition to the X-Men stood with an even face, the crisp morning air ruffling his trench coat. Scott had insisted he take the jacket off and wear a New Recruit suit like everyone else, but Rogue had almost had an aneurysm. So, over his uniform it went. Fall was approaching Bayville, fast. The days were getting shorter and the temperature was dropping.

A fine frost covered the grass as Remy waited patiently for more instruction from his 'leader'. His growing, auburn hair dipped lazily beneath red irises. Surviving the streets of New Orleans and fending for himself had been harder than anything he'd thrown at him, yet. And they both knew the prize was worth it, or this wouldn't have been happening.

He flipped his staff around him as Scott glared, thinking of what outdoor course might break his teammate today. Jean sighed when a sinister glint hit his eye. "Outside Course: _Wolverine_." He called. Even he hadn't been this ruthless, yet. Logan only showed repeat offenders what his courses consisted off, and they straightened out right away. Scott was really throwing Remy to the wolves.

His girlfriend crossed her arms and waited to be acknowledged, tapping a finger on the flesh of her forearm. She was shrouded in one of Scott's 'X' hoodies. _"Ahem_, good morning?" He jumped slightly, looking through binoculars as he southerner started the drill. "Didn't know you were Remy were training partners." He snorted at her.

"Who's Remy? Oh, _Gambit._" His nose wrinkled in disgust. He turned his attention back to the X-Man deftly dodging saws with his staff. Apparently, Magneto's training was as hard as Wolverine's. He grumbled to himself as Jean huffed.

"Scott. Why are you punishing him?" He turned to his girlfriend finally, an eyebrow arched in surprise. Kitty had been trying to get him to take it easier on the cajun, and he didn't want to think about he and Rogue's blowout arguments. They were an everyday occurrence. Now, she was in on it?

_"Et tu_, Brutus..." She smirked. He turned away when he heard explosions. "Why do you think I'm punishing him?" She only rolled her eyes.

"The Wolverine course?_ Really_?" He couldn't bite back his slight grin. It was diabolical, even if Remy didn't seem ruffled.

"He was disrespectful during a training session and walked out." He finally answered, stone-faced._ 'You were laying into him about his girlfriend in front of his girlfriend._' Jean thought, but was careful not to say. That approach had gotten them nowhere, even if he would've had a way worse reaction if the tables had been turned. "He's held to the same standards as everyone else, even if he's older _or_ above skill-level." He said those things as though they were bad.

"When Bobby and Jaime used to act out, you spent time with them." She pointed out, her voice starting to nag. Scott sighed.

"They were _kids-_"

"But they are all your teammates. A part of the team _you_ lead." Scott was silent. He was good at shutting down when he wanted, considering he dated a telepath (one of the most powerful, at that). "What is the definition of punishment?" She asked, changing her approach altogether. He burned under her gaze. Scott wasn't really in the mood, but as usual, he indulged her.

"The infliction or imposition of a penalty as retribution for an offense." He answered without missing a beat. Jean chuckled as she tied her red hair up in a ponytail.

"So, you do pay attention in English 101. Okay, answer this. If you inflict a punishment on someone, but they say it isn't punishment... Not to_ them,_ is it still punishment?" He huffed in exasperation, a bit annoyed and yet remembering why he loved Jean so much. She was relentless, always searching to hear a truth admitted that she already knew. Knew the moment she looked at him. She was like therapy as a human. It was exhilarating and exhausting.

"Uh..." Scott scratched his head and looked away from Gambit. "Gee, I dunno, Jean. You know I'm not much of a philosopher..." These conversations always reminded him how deep, how cultured, how_ in-tune_ with the collective consciousness psychics and Jean were. They were almost supernatural, he just shot beams out of his eyes. God forbid she met a telepath more handsome than he was, he always felt too grounded with her.

The course ended and the sun had finally risen. Scott was too contemplative to continue annoying Remy, so if that's what Jean wanted, she got it. They watched in silence as Rogue flew down from her balcony where she'd been watching the cajun. She was shrouded in one of Remy's olive bomber jackets he never got to wear cause she took it. Her signature bob was growing past her shoulders, silver bangs still in her eyes.

She was fleeing to her teammate, but he was staring back at Scott. Waiting for instruction. Reluctantly, Scott waved a hand and he turned to receive Rogue. She lifted off her feet, floating gracefully into his arms_ "Insensée!"_ He exclaimed, his eyes shining with amusement. "Silly girl, Gambit tol'ya t'sleep. Just cause one eye make me..." His voice trailed off when she learned her head against his, her silver bangs protecting them both.

Scott huffed indignantly but Jean almost sighed like she was watching a romance movie._ 'I want to get back to that...'_ She turned to Scott with a smile. "Don't you get it?" He shrugged.

_Jean had pulled the short straw with Logan, using her insomnia to recalibrate the turrets in the Danger Room. She hated the menial job, but she was super good at it. One thing led to another, and he had guilted her into it. 'Shouldn't this be Kitty's job?'_

_She was hidden out of sight, swallowed in the wires of the impressive room's ceiling. She froze when somebody entered. She moved to tell them that the power was cut, but she paused when she saw Rogue and Remy. Logan would have a heart attack if he caught them, up before sunrise, in the Danger Room alone. And so would her boyfriend. She stifled a sigh. _

_She felt so bad for how Scott had made it his personal mission to haze Remy. His kidnapping had been out of bounds, but she and Kitty had always found it romantic. Passionate, something Scott couldn't seem to understand. That, and obsessive thoughts of the man being a mole to Magneto kept a rift strong between them. _

_Rogue looked upset, and tired. Her growing hair is wavier than she ever presents it to the institute, her face blank of any makeup besides yesterday's eyeshadow. Remy was cool as a cucumber, trying to soothe the girl's anxieties. "Shhh, petite. Y'wake Wolvie. Den what?" Rogue sighed. _

_"Ah can't stand this, Remy. It's killin' me." Jean bit her lip, her telepath's intuition and maternal instincts making her feel like she should make herself known. Even try to comfort the girl herself when she feels the intense sadness and fear. Guilt. 'What's wrong, Rogue?' She's clutching her fists tight, hating herself for crying. There was nothing Mystique hated more than tears, she learned that years ago._

_The cajun responded gingerly, tenderly to her sadness as he wiped them away. "Chére..." _

_"If he drove you away, Ah would just die." Remy almost seemed amused as she turned away from him, crying. Scott was trying to intimidate Remy out of pursuing her, of being an X-Men, out of everything. And she was terrified SHE would be the reason he left. 'Scott doesn't realize what he's really doing.' The goth folded her arms, trying to worm away from him. "You shouldn't have to be punished jus' cause he... He-" _

_"Ain' punishment, petite." He pulled her close and grabbed the black scarf that was often around her neck when they were together. Jean watched (feeling guilty the whole time) as Remy delicately brought his lips to hers, separated by thin fabric in-between. He pulled apart and looked down at her. "Dere ain' nothin' you ain' worth to Remy." He whispered, his face serious. "Mean dat."_

_"But it's stiil-"  
_

_"It is what it is, petite. Das what Tante Mattie tol' me." He flashed a dazzling grin, leaning in. "Remy gon' be in peak shape, and fille will jus' like me more... So much fo' One-Eye." He dipped her backwards so the scarf flashed across his face and he kissed her again, this kiss making the psychic as red as her hair. "Remy won' leave you." He promised, hooking her hands in his. "'Specially not cause no boy scout." _

_Jean watched as they disappeared, together. _

Scott's face was as red as she'd expected it to be. She knew she couldn't tell Rogue she'd seen, the only way she could make it right was to try to get him to lay off. "You _aren't_ punishing Remy, he said so himself. You're punishing Rogue when you're trying to protect her." His shoulders sloped. He hated when Jean was right, when it was about him, anyway. She was always on the mark.

"I just..." Scott couldn't decipher what he felt when he saw them together. It was something similar to Logan, but less homicidal. He watched as Remy wrapped the sides of his trench coat around his teammate. "I _don't t_rust him, Jean." He admitted finally, his teeth clenched. "You saw how she was, when she saw that she was used by him-"

_"Yes,"_ Jean cut in, holding her hands up at her boyfriend's rising voice. "But she's forgiven him. Even _Logan._.. You gotta trust her, Scott. This way, you're only hurting her." Jean shrugged as they watched Rogue trace her fingers over the black, lycra part of Remy's X-Suit that covered his face. "Besides, hasn't he already _passed_ the test?" She began to walk away from him as a breeze blew. "He didn't leave her, despite your hazing." He turned back where Rogue was soaring above Remy's head.

She was beaming. He'd never sen Rogue smile so wide, not even when Logan gave her one of his bikes. She was so happy. So open. So _different_. Could it be that Scott had wanted it to be_ him_ to affect her this way, to complete the transformation that'd been happening since she got there. The one _he_ started? For a while, Scott was the only X-Man she could relate to. He went on a limb for her, constantly, and it was his friendship that gave her the capacity to be Kitty's best friend, to consider Kurt her brother.

Scott the doer, the fixer, the leader; He wanted to do what Gambit had done so effortlessly, ever since New Orleans.

_"_All that matters is that she's doing_ better,_ Scott. And, not even a cajun thief will change the place you nestled in her heart." As though she read his mind (he knew she didn't), Jean was smiling at him. She always knew what to say, and in that moment he was glad he knew her better than anyone else. Better than anyone had, or ever will.

He reached out towards her and dipped her back, kissing her like they used to all the time in high school. Like they'd never kiss again. Yes, Jean had gotten exactly what she wanted. Twice over.


End file.
